News, ideas, thoughts, game breakdowns, in-depth statistics, and a whole lot of passion about the New England Patriots from a 20+ year season ticket holder. (Note: even this blog is done in official Patriots colors!)

Sunday, December 26, 2010

What else is new? The Patriots blasted the Bills, 34-3 (their 15th consecutive victory over the Bills), the win secures an eighth division title under Bill Belichick and the coveted #1 playoff seed in the AFC. So it'll be home cooking in the playoffs, and as long as they continue winning their next plane trip would be for the Super Bowl in Dallas. Next week Miami visits Foxboro for what is essentially a meaningless game, except for the importance of avoiding injuries.

This one was a laugher early on. The Bills ran the ball well on their first drive and got a field goal, but the Patriots adjusted to shut down the run and put the pressure on quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. (Trivia question: did the Bills have more rushing yards on their first drive or in the rest of the game? Answer below.) And once the game was on the quarterback, he wilted under the pressure, fumbling twice and throwing three interceptions. For the game the Bills had seven turnovers, which is almost as many as the Patriots have all year (9), and the Patriots scored 34 unanswered points to cruise to victory.

It was mostly good on both offense and defense. Tom Brady was nearly flawless in the snow again, missing only a few passes where wind may have been a factor. His streak of consecutive passes without an interception now stands at an NFL record 319 attempts over 10 games, which is absolutely remarkable. He did a great job managing things, throwing underneath most of the day and not once putting the ball at risk. And his numbers would have looked even better if Wes Welker (of all people) held onto the ball.

Welker was the only dim bulb among the receivers, dropping at least three catchable balls. He's had a few drops lately, and he'll need to straighten that out if the team expects to make a serious playoff run. Welker did get three catches on the day, and Rob Gronkowski (4 catches for 54 yards and 2 touchdowns) and Danny Woodhead (3 for 32 yards) picked up the slack. Gronk impresses every week, both as a practically-uncoverable receiver and a blocker in the running game, and given the limitations of the passing game on Sunday, it's a good thing the Patriots can run it and the Bills can't stop the run.

Danny Woodhead started the Patriots scoring with a 39-yard scamper right through the Bills defense. Woodhead almost notched 100 yards (he had 93), while bruiser-back BenJarvus Green-Ellis did break the century mark with 104. They controlled the ball with the run, racking up a 5:00 advantage in time of possession and wearing down the Bills defense until the players looked like didn't want to be there in the second half.

And of course, no running or passing could happen without the offensive line, which was stellar. They left behind the problems of last week, plowing through the defense on running plays and providing great protection in the passing game. Center Dan Koppen and tight end Alge Crumpler impressed me the most, doubling the interior line and opening huge holes for the backs. The Bills hit Brady just twice (one sack), and when the protection broke down, Brady bought time in the pocket or ran for the first down. Just a great day by the O-line and the offense, under less than ideal conditions.

Most of the defense played great, putting together a solid performance with hard hits, sure tackles (except for the first Bills possession), and timely turnovers. Patrick Chung makes a difference every game he plays, defending two passes on Sunday with jarring hits and intercepting a pass when the Bills were driving to make it a one-score game. Devin McCourty continues his solid play in the secondary, and even Darius Butler pitched in and played surprisingly well. James Sanders missed the game with an illness, but Brandon Meriweather stepped in and played okay; though the team really needs Chung and Sanders in there for the playoffs.

Jerod Mayo had a great overall game: 5 tackles, 1 QB hit, 2 passes defended, 1 forced fumble, and 1 fumble recovery. Not a lot of players hit as hard as he does and go sideline-to-sideline in run support. And he added excellent pass coverage against the Bills, which is the weakest part of his game. His ILB partner, Gary Guyton excelled, too: 6 tackles, 1 sack, 2 passes defended, and 1 forced fumble of his own. You should still hope that Brandon Spikes returns to form after his league-suspension ends next week, but for now Guyton is doing well.

The weak spot on defense was the outside linebackers. Jermaine Cunningham missed the game with an injury, and that put Rob Ninkovich opposite Tully Banta-Cain. Ninkovich didn't make any really bad plays, but Banta-Cain guessed wrong about half the time, allowing big running plays and losing his outside contain on the pass rush. This was not an injury thing; he just got abused by the Bills' play-calling and game plan. Banta-Cain topped the team with eight tackles; but that is a lot less impressive given that he gave up huge plays on the first drive and was repeatedly lost. He's been here long enough to know the defense, and we best hope this game was an aberration.

Vince Wilfork played great again, and his mates on the defensive line bottled things up and made effective adjustments during the game. And those other D-linemen: Kyle Love, Eric Moore, Ron Brace, and Gerard Warren -- weren't exactly expected to burn it up this year. Love is a rookie, Brace was awful last year, Warren was supposedly too old, and Moore played in the UFL earlier this year. Give credit to the defensive line coach, Pepper Johnson, for great work with a lineup that changes every week because of injuries and that is missing Ty Warren (out for the year) and Mike Wright and Myron Pryor (both out with injuries lately).

Special teams did okay. Shane Graham's kickoffs were shorter but higher, giving the coverage team a chance to make the tackle... which they did. Average kickoff return by the Bills was 15.5 yards, and in fact they had zero yards on punt returns, which is a credit to punter Zoltan Mesko. But overall, Graham's kickoffs were better. He won't be the weapon Gostkowski was, but if his kicks are like they were against Buffalo that would be fine.

So where does that leave us? 13-2 guarantees them a first round bye in the playoffs and home games through the AFC Championship if they continue winning. Regardless of next week's outcome, the Patriots are two wins away from the Super Bowl; how many pundits predicted *that* before the year started? So the big thing against Miami is to stay healthy... no last-minute injuries like last season.

Statistical Oddity of the Week: The Patriots and Bills each committed exactly 6 penalties for exactly 40 yards.

Weekly Water-cooler Wisdom: "Here's hoping the Bills never move out the division -- we *own* them."

Keep the faith,

- Scott

PS. 13-2!

PPS. Trivia answer:

V
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The Bills had 64 yards rushing on their opening drive and 61 yards rushing the rest of the game.

3 comments:

Why u hatin on TBC? Guy plays hurt and u bash him! He's been the teams most consistent OLB and stats prove it. 7th round pick who made a name for himself and never gets credit. Check cunninghams college stats vs banta-Cain and then look at this years stats. hater

LOL... tough to call me a TBC hater when I crowned him their defensive MVP last season (http://yourpatriots.blogspot.com/2010/01/patriots-2009-regular-season-awards.html).

I don't care what round he was drafted, he had a bad game and I called him on it. Take a look at the first play, when he let Fred Jackson run right by for 27 yards. Show that play to TBC himself and he'll admit he whiffed.

I wrote in the post that I hope it was a temporary hiccup, and I stand by that. Here's hoping he plays better when the games count.

hey man, you commented last week how Brandon Meriweather should be on the bench for the Pats. I actually agree (I think I could read which zone I should be in better than him), but I found it hilarious that he got picked to the Pro Bowl. Eric Weddle should have gone.

Mankins got picked too. Seriously? I love him, but he played half a season!